When One Door Closes
by The Anime kid and Chaos Girl
Summary: Did you ever wonder what would happen once XANA is gone? Warning: Contains madmen, slumber parties, and giant robots. AU sorta. R&R pleez!
1. Chapter 1

okay, here we go... I started this story about last year and I've been posting it on a forum: http(colon)(slash)(slash)s7(dot)invisionfree(dot)com(slash)UnMondeSansDanger. I just now got the bright idea to put it up here. I don't know if the storyline has been done before-- which I doubt, highly, I'm just putting it up.

About the story... I guess it could act as sort of an AU version of Season Two (Or season 2.5... but nothing in the upcoming season would have affected it). A branch off from the regular timeline.

**Chapter 1 Shut Down**

"Alright, you guys. This is it," Jeremie announced over the P.A. He had completed the anti-virus and another program he had been running under XANA's nose that would cause XANA to delete himself if he tried to activate a tower during the materialization process. It was the end, and XANA knew it.

He went all out. As soon as Yumi, Ulrich, and Odd were virtualized in the Forest Region, they were completely surrounded by megatanks, blocks, and hornets. They worked their way through the sea of monsters until they reached Aelita. Odd had been reckless and lost too many life points. He was de-virtualized as soon as they got to her by a lone hornet. Ulrich and Yumi worked as a team, Yumi in front of Aelita, using her telekinesis to block attacks until it was too much for her to bear. With that worn out, she eliminated any monster who dared to challenge her metal geisha fan. Ulrich, or rather the three Ulrichs, deflected laser barrage, Impacted and Triangulated until they just couldn't Impact or Triangulate any more.

Jeremie watched XANA's rampage at Kadic through his cameras that were mounted all over the campus. It was horrible. XANA had infected every heat and light source in the school and was determined to broil every student and teacher. They tried to escape, but he had electrified the gates and there was no other way out. Jeremie could barely stand the cries of pain echoing through the super calculator control room, and yet he could do nothing more than he was already doing.

The Lyoko team had finally reached the Passage Tower that was Aelita's portal to the real world. Aelita walked through the tower wall while Ulrich and Yumi stood guard outside. She walked to the center of the platform and rose up for the last time.

Meanwhile, the scene at the school was ineffable. The thermometer on the super calculator's moniter said that temperatures had risen to 65 degrees Celsius (A/N: Which, for you non-metric know-knothings is around 149 degrees Fahrenheit, which is hotter than the highest temperature recorded on earth, and that was in Libya.) The bodies of students and teachers were sprawled everywhere moaning in agony.

Aelita reached the top platform, her identity was confirmed, and she entered the Code.

Everyone was crowded around the super calculator's moniter, and Aelita was waiting patiently in the passage tower.

"Are you ready, Aelita?" Jeremie asked.

"Yes, Jeremie,"

"Okay. I'm running the anti-virus now," Jeremie began to type furiously at the keyboard. "Done."

He slipped a CD into the computer's disk drive that was thankfully NOT Odd's dumb video. Aelita rose in the air once more, and dozens of holographic screens surrounded her.

"Code: Earth," The blond haired genius smiled as he pressed te enter button. Then, she was gone. Jeremie's maps indicated that no one was on Lyoko at all. The entire team ran to the elevator. Everyone stood in silence as the elevator decended to the scanner room. They walked to the center scanner, and it opened. Jeremie caught the new arrival as she fell out of the scanner.

"Welcome to our world," Jeremie whispered. Aelita giggled and gave him a great big hug, which made him blush of course. Everyone cheered and jumped up and down, running towards Jeremie and Aelita. They all joined in a group hug.

"It's time to get back to buisness," Jeremie's face was now serious. "We need to go shut down XANA." Aelita nodded, and they went to the elevator and stepped inside. It went down a level to the super computer room that contained XANA's CPU.

"Do you want me to do it?" Jeremie asked, turning to the red head.

"No. This time, I'm ready. Let's do it together," Aelita said boldly. Jeremie couldn't help but smile at her new-found confidence. THey walked to the computer and put their hands on the switch.

"XANA, this is the end for you. There is no going back. Goodbye," Jeremie stated, and they pulled down the switch. The computer's lights turned off, and it shut down.

"And good riddance," said Aelita, squinting at the machine. They left the factory, with hopes to never return again.

Unbeknownst to them, someone had watched the whole thing. A man smiled darkly and stood up from his chair.

"It's time for Phase I."

* * *

Yeah... Chapter One is kind of short. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two It's Not Over**

"Aelita sure is adjusting well..." Ulrich said at the lunch table the next day. Aelita was now discovering this new-fangled invention called 'food'. As soon as she put her fork to her mouth, she began eating bite after bite, faster and faster. She was gobbling up her food, and charging back up to get some more. Her culinary consumption rate rivaled even Odd's, who was impressed greatly. Everyone else was looking a little amazed.

"Um, Aelita, if you keep eating like that, you'll start to get sick..." Jeremie suggested.

"Nonsense, Jeremie!" Aelita could barely _breathe_, let alone talk in-between stuffing her mouth with food.

And then, as she was just finishing her third plate of unidentifiable cafeteria food, Aelita let out a great, huge belch. Everyone in the lunch room giggled, and Sissi walked by the table giving her a disgusted look.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't Miss I'm So Special Just Because I'm New. Don't think you can fool me. I'm on to your little trick," She said, and a sudden hush swept over the room, just like it does before a fight. Aelita, on the other hand, was confused as to what this girl was talking about.

"What do you mean? I'm not pulling a trick--"

"Oh, please," Sissi scoffed. "You think I can't see that you've got these boys eating out of the palm of you hand?"

"Hey!" Yumi said, offended by being put in the same gender as her friends.

"Oh, yeah. And the loser girl," The principal's daughter said with an evil smirk. She turned towards Ulrich, the obvious reason she came to their table in the first place.

"Ulrich, dear! Do you want to come sit with us and leave these..." She eyed Aelita. "dimwitted twerps?" Ulrich was very upset.

"Look, Sissi," He said, squinting his eyes at her, "After you come over here and demean my friends like that, I'd rather chew off my foot than be anywhere near you." Sissi's face went through a mixture of shock, hurt, anguish, and fury all at the same time.

"Hmph!" She turned up her nose and went back to sit with Herb and Nicolas.

"That's okay, Sissi. They're all just pedomorphic idiots," Herb tried to console Sissi, who was leaning on the table and sniffing.

"You shut up, do you hear me?" She snapped. Suddenly, back at the Lyoko gang's table, Aelita hiccuped. And hiccuped. And hiccuped. She started to hiccup uncontrollably and she grabbed at her throat, gasping for breath.

"Oh no! If she keeps hiccuping like that, she'll run out of air!" Jeremie stood up and dashed to get her a glass of water. The others helped her up. She drank the glass of water, and the hiccups stopped.

"That was strange..."

"Just the hiccups. Involuntary spasms of the diaphragm. Usually happens after you eat too fast." Jeremie explained.

"No, I know that. That wasn't it... it felt like... I don't know how it's possible, but I felt... pulsations. I know I'm not in Lyoko, and XANA is shut down, but it felt exactly like that before I started hiccuping." Soon after Aelita finished, a beam of light knocked down the door to the cafeteria. In walked 3 blocks, materialized on Earth!

"XANA!" The Lyoko gang exclaimed at the same time.

"HOW! WE SHUT HIM DOWN!" Jeremie was beginning to get hysterical.

"Jeremie," Yumi said suddenly in an urgent tone, "Look at that block. Does it seem... different to you?" Jeremie turned and looked at the block. It seemed just like the blocks he had seen when Aelita gave him a view of Lyoko through her eyes. Except… _That's it!_ he thought. _The XANA symbol is missing. What is that in the center of it, then? It looks like some weird 'e'…_

"An 'E'? Why is there an 'E'?"  
"I don't know. But I'm thinking we should get to the factory so we can be virtulized into the supposedly shut down super computer." They made a break for it and ran out the door.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three: Complications Arise**

They never made it to the factory. Halfway down the sewer, they were stopped by a blockade of guards, each dressed in black suits. (A/N: Sans sunglasses. Didn't want them to seem too MIB-ish.) Ulrich, Odd and Yumi skidded to a stop on their skateboards. Aelita and Jeremie were flipped over the handlebars of his scooter.

"W-what the--"Odd began, but a guard hit him over the head before he could finish. All went black as they were knocked uncounscious and apprehended by the strangers.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't Jeremie Belpois," a man's voice awoke Jeremie from his temporary slumber.

"Who...what...?" the young genius stuttered. "Where am I?"  
"Why, Jeremie, don't you recognize this place?" Jeremie looked around. They were in the Super Calculator room, and the man was sitting in _his_ chair!

"Where are my friends?" Jeremie asked, beginning to get angry.  
"Your friends aren't important right now." Jeremie squinted at the stranger. He was wearing a white labcoat and was bald with sideburns and a beard.

"Who are you?"  
"So many questions, young Jeremie. But if you must know, my name is Doctor Gibson." Jeremie snorted at him.

"We've been watching you, Jeremie," Gibson continued. "Cutting class, seemingly vanishing in the park through your secret passageway. Saving the world is too big a task for junior _high_ students." Jeremie eyed the exit, and guards were standing by the elevator door.

"The XANA super computer system and... Lyoko... were created with immense data storage capabilites, access to any computer in the world, and now, _now_, with the help of your materialization program, the ability to create. Mankind had always been able to design and construct, but never create from pure will. Through reproduction, one could create life, but it is never original. Now, if one wanted to create a perfect soldier, all one would have to do is write a program and presto! Instant army." Gibson began to smile. "We at EMPIRE have a vision to make the world a better place. By any means nescessary. If that means conquering it first, then so be it."  
"You're insane!" Jeremie shouted, backing away. Doctor Gibson gave him a little _tsk_.  
"You just don't understand, child," he said. Jeremie sprang up and dashed towards the door, and punched the button for the elevator.  
"Sir, shall we recapture the boy?" one of the men in the black suits asked.  
"Let him go."  
"But, Sir--"  
"I said, let him go! There is nothing he can do to stop us now." The twisted doctor chuckled, and then threw his head back and laughed maniacally. The guard who had spoken to him began to laugh again.  
"PATTERSON!"  
"Yes, sir?"  
"Shut up."  
"Yes, sir."

* * *

I know, I know... short. Extremely short. Hey, it didn't look that bad on the forum (by the way, that forum is Un Monde Sans Danger, an online community with sections dedicated to Code: Lyoko. /advertising) 


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4 Never Give Up Hope**

Odd and Aelita had been tied up and put into a room deep within the old factory, which was now EMPIRE's base of operations. It was hard to tell what time it was, since they both had been unconscious for God knows how long. Apparently, they didn't want to kill them… yet. Odd had gone sullen and was talking about irrelevant facts to pass the time.  
"You know what I found out from Emilie yesterday?" Odd asked, staring up at the ceiling. Aelita sighed.  
"No, Odd. What did you find out?"  
"Sissi's real name is Elizabeth . How in the world do you get Sissi from _Elizabeth_?" He said, not moving his head from leaning back on the chair. They were both bound at the arms and legs, so it was impossible for them to untie themselves.  
"You know, I really don't know. Maybe it's just a nickname. How long do you think it'll take Jeremie to come save us?"  
"Aelita. I know you sort of have a thing for Jeremie, but let's face facts—he's not exactly Indiana Jones," Odd replied.  
"I have faith in him," said Aelita.  
"Of course you do!" Odd said in a teasing tone.  
"If you don't shut up, I'll…"  
"You'll what? Shoot a booger at my face? We're tied up, remember?"  
"What's a…booger?"  
"Never mind."  
They both sat in silence for a while. Then Aelita spoke up.  
"Odd… what if…we don't get out of this? Those strange men in suits seem to have taken over the factory, and they don't seem to like us very much. I think they know that we know about Lyoko… what if they want to get rid of us like XANA once did? Will they send in an executioner or… just let us… starve to death?"   
"I don't know what's going to happen to us. I don't even know who those people are… but I do know that we should never give up hope. My grandmother always tells me that, and it kind of became my philosophy," The boy with the spiked hair said.  
_Wow_, thought Aelita, _I guess there's more to Odd than his silly exterior._ (A/N: Don't worry! I am NOT going to turn this into an Aelita/Odd fic! NEVER! AELITA x JEREMIE 4EVERRRRRR) The two didn't say much else for a long time. Eventually, they each drifted off to sleep, probably due to the lack of sleep and their bodies' need for energy.

Odd was awakened by someone violently shaking him. He opened his eyes. It was another guard, but this time it was a female, just around his age.  
"Hey! Stop shaking me! If you and those other guys are gonna kill me, you can just do it when I'm asleep!" he protested.  
"Shut up!" She hissed. She looked over her shoulder. "Do you want them to hear you? I'm trying to save your life, here!" Odd studied the girl. _Oh my God. What a tacky uniform. Well, actually… she's kind of cute… in a mysterious sort of way. I can barely see her in the dark, though. Those blue eyes…_  
"You're what?"  
"You heard me!" The girl untied him, and the ropes fell to the ground. "Now help me untie Miss Pink-head."  
"Her name is Aelita."  
"Whatever! Ugh, I don't even know why I'm doing this… Just hurry up!"  
They started to untie Aelita, and the girl covered her mouth when she tried to scream.  
"It's okay, Aelita. She's… helping us." After they were both free, Odd, Aelita, and Blue Eyes crept up to the door, and looked through the crack. There were two guards outside the door, one was dozing off, and the other was leaning on the wall. They listened, and they could hear his snoring. Little by little, Odd pushed on the door. The small hallway was illuminated by a single light bulb hanging from the ceiling. They did not move faster than about one step per minute. Aelita made the mistake of stepping on a creaky floorboard, and everyone froze. The guards shuffled a little, but they were still asleep.  
Once they reached the end of the hall, the three made a mad dash for cover. When they were out of earshot, Odd spoke up.  
"Why are you helping us?" he asked. "And who are you?"  
"I am helping you because I'm on your side. I think my f... Dr. Gibson… the head of EMPIRE, is insane," She scoffs. "Thinks he can rule the world with a little computer."  
"You didn't answer his other question," Aelita said. Blue Eyes kind of flashed a glance out of the corner of her eye, as if she wanted to look around but was afraid to.  
"I... I don't know if I should tell you." Odd frowned and was about to say something, when Blue Eyes interrupted.  
"I can lead you to where your friends Yumi and Ulrich are being held," she said. "Come on."  
Odd and Aelita left the cover of the machine they were hiding behind, and followed Blue Eyes. She walked swiftly and quiet as a mouse, amazingly sure-footed in the dark of the factory. The group walked for a time, then Blue Eyes held up her hand and they all stopped short.  
"Shh!" she warned. They didn't move a muscle, breathe, or even _blink_. The girl dove behind another machine, and waved enthusiastically for them to follow. In an extreme stroke of luck, they made it behind the machine just as the older female guard walked by. The three leaned against the machine, not even thinking about doing anything but breathing very quietly and keeping their hears and brains functioning. Aelita was afraid that her heartbeat would be so loud that the guard would hear, but she waved it off as an impossibility; simply a fear brought on by intense stress. Then she was gone.  
"It's not far from here. Let's hurry!" Blue Eyes said, and they ran as fast as they could without making any noise to a door in an off-hallway. "Those idiots were too stupid to put guards right by the door…"  
Blue Eyes slowly turned the knob and opened the door. Yumi's head snapped up when she saw her, and Odd frantically put a finger up to his mouth to shush her so she wouldn't scream. Once Yumi and Ulrich were untied, Ulrich stared at the guard, not wanting to trust her. Aelita was reassuring him that she was definitely on their side, when Blue Eyes headed towards the door.  
"Where do you think you're going?" Odd said in frightened disbelief.  
"I'm sorry. I have to get back to my post now or they'll suspect something. I promise we'll meet again."  
"Where is Jeremie?" asked Aelita, stepping forward urgently.  
"I don't know. I'm very sorry, but you'll be on your own for a while. Keep on the watch for guards," Blue eyes made a start for the door again.  
"Please," Odd pleaded. "Please tell me your name before you go."  
The girl sensed the desperation in his voice, and she sighed.  
"My name," she began, "is Hope."


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5 Narrow Escape**

_There's something about that girl that I just don't like,_ thought Ulrich, as they snuck out of their mock-prison. Hope had gone off to her post, and left Odd half-smiling, saying, "I always knew there was something special about that saying." Ulrich turned towards him.  
"How do you know she's not just letting us on? She might be a traitor and has led us straight into a trap," he said.  
"I just know. She would never do that," Odd said, never quite losing that look on his face. Ulrich rolled his eyes. He was about to comment on the fact that Odd just met Hope half an hour ago, but he saw Yumi giving him a cold stare and shaking her head a little, so he held his tongue.  
"We have to find Jeremie!" said Aelita, bringing everyone back to the task at hand. "Do you have any idea where he might be?"  
"For some reason, I don't think they kept him in a regular room." Yumi Ishiyama said. "He operated the Super Calculator, and he knows more about Lyoko than any of us. No, he was not put in a room like we were. Somewhere different. Somewhere…"  
"Somewhere like the control room itself!" Odd and Ulrich said in unison. It was decided to go to the Super Calculator control room and rescue Jeremie.  
"Wait a minute," Aelita grabbed Ulrich's arm. "Why would they do that? Couldn't he just connect to Lyoko, since obviously XANA is back online?"  
"You're right," Yumi said. "Maybe there was someone else there to make sure he didn't. I bet somebody had plans for Jeremie." Odd spoke up.  
"I remember Hope telling me something about the leader of EMPIRE, Doctor Giblets or something like that."  
"Oh, yes, I remember. It was Dr. Gibson, I think." Aelita said, nodding her head. Ulrich frowned.  
"That means there's bound to be tons of guards surrounding the freight elevator. We're out of luck, unless you're up to fighting dozens of people, without Lyoko powers."  
"We have to try." Ulrich sighed and agreed. They walked to the end of the off-hallway, and peeked around the corner for guards. The group advanced to an assembly line, right in front of a stairway leading to the next level. (Just for reference, they are near the front of the factory. The bridge and the freight elevator are at the back.) There were two guards, ones a little older than they were, in front of the stairs.  
_Hm. I guess they let younger people join this crazy… thing,_ Yumi thought. Ulrich had gathered two metal poles and handed one to Yumi.  
"On three. One…two…" he began.  
"THREE!" Yumi shouted as they both charged from behind the assembly line, striking the surprised guards before they could react.  
"I guess it helps to know martial arts in situations like this," Odd said. He and Aelita were already heading up the stairs, while Ulrich and Yumi had to lug the unconscious teens and hide them somewhere. They soon joined their comrades.

_This is all my fault,_ thought Jeremie, running away as fast as he could from Dr. Gibson, the super calculator, and that whole crazy organization. _If I hadn't been so stupid and left the materialization program on there and the computer intact, ready to be brought back online… I could have at least broke the switch off. But no. I had been too foolish. And now this mentally ill madman is going to take over the word and there's nothing I can do…_  
Jeremie had been too busy thinking and just plain trying to get _away_ to notice where his feet were taking him. He was now on the roof of the factory. It was his favorite place to go when he wasn't monitoring Lyoko or hanging out with his friends. When he wanted to be alone. It overlooked the river, and on good days there was a gentle breeze and a warm sun. He had planned to take Aelita there one day when the bad memories of XANA wouldn't keep them away. It was so private and secluded, and Jeremie doubted anyone knew how to get there besides him and the people who built the factory of course. Today was unlike the good old days. It had started to rain while they were gone, and instead of the quiet winds there were violent gusts and heavy downpour. Jeremie was now completely soaked, but he didn't care. He just wanted to be alone. Then he remembered the school and how they just left, expecting a return trip to the past. He turned around and headed for the door.

Ulrich, Aelita, Yumi, and Odd's plan to save Jeremie didn't work. They were captured once they finally reached the cathedral part of the factory (yeah, yeah, I know. I got it from that one French CL site with the map, and it may have not translated that right). There were around eighty guards, waiting, ready for them. Some of the adult EMPIRE guards attacked with their uniform martial arts style, and Yumi and Ulrich tried to defend themselves while Odd and Aelita tried to make a break for the elevator. Alas, their effort was in vain because they had a remote-shut down for it. Ulrich attacked with the pole he had found earlier and used it like he was an expert, striking to the front, the back, side to side; while his Japanese friend fought hand to hand with some of the younger guards. This lasted for about five minutes. Then some higher-up buff looking officials came around the corner and it was over in a few unbelievably swift and strong attacks. Once the kids had been recaptured, the guards discussed what to do with them.  
"You think we should take 'em to the boss? He might want to deal with these troublemakers himself." One man in a black suit suggested.  
"Ha! Like he'd want to bother with them." A familiar voice came from the crowd. Hope stepped forward.  
"Mr. Patterson, did the good doctor not inform you that he no longer had any use for these captives?" she said rather loudly and oh-so official sounding. She shoved forth someone who she had brought along with her. It was Jeremie.  
"Ah, I see you've got the smart one."  
"Of course. Now if you don't mind, I've been given orders to escort the prisoners to our holding base south of Paris." Now, as she said this, she winked at Odd so he knew that she was not betraying them. He acted as if she just said they were going to be executed. Jeremie, however, was a very bad actor.  
"Oh…no. Please do not take me to that horr-i-ble place. Somebody help…me?" he said, not enthusiastic at all. Patterson chuckled.  
"Very well, Ms. Jamison. You two! Deliver the captives over to Ms. Jamison!" he shouted at the officials restraining the gang who weren't exactly trying to get away while Hope distracted them. The girl with the blue eyes "escorted" the "prisoners" outside into the stormy weather.  
"_Ms._ Jamison?" Odd asked.  
"That's just what they call me. Jamison's not even my real last name," she said, giving him a warm smile. It quickly turned into an angry face. "WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!"  
Odd jumped back a little.  
"Well, we thought, you know—"  
"You thought wrong! Did you expect to walk into the main control center and there NOT be hordes of guards waiting!" Hope shouted scornfully at the lot of them. She looked away.  
"I'm sorry. I just got a little upset. You're lucky I ran into your friend here and he told me where they put him. I figured you guys would try something, so I devised a plan and we headed for the elevator.  
"Are you really going to take us to the whatever in the south of Paris?" Ulrich asked.  
"Of course not! I'm just gonna sign fake prisoner transfer forms and shred some random five prisoner's records. Don't you trust me?"  
Ulrich thought about this, and slowly began to shake his head. Hope looked hurt for all of one second and then pretended not to notice it.  
"Anyway, I think you guys should head back to your school. The blocks they sent were merely to lure you into the sewer, so it should be quiet there," Hope said, smiling once again. She turned towards Odd and slipped him a piece of paper.  
"My cell phone number and my e-mail address," she whispered. "I'm dreadfully sorry to keep leaving you like this, but I really need to send those fake forms. Contact me if you need me."  
Hope winked again, and then left for the factory. As soon as she was gone, the gang surrounded Odd. They were all going "ooooooooh" teasingly.  
"Odd's got a girlfriend!" Yumi sang.  
"I do not! Shut up!" he replied.  
"Odd and Ho-ope sitting in a tree!" Aelita and Jeremie sung together.  
"I SAID SHUT UP!"  
"K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"  
"UGH!"  
"She said contact me if you "neeeeed me"!" Yumi teased. "I guess we know where to find you if you're late for class!"  
That was the last straw. Odd glared at them all and then ran to the raft.  
"Hurry up! If you start that up again, I'm gonna leave you!" he shouted. They didn't, of course. They piled in the raft and rowed to shore.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6 Plans (I couldnt think up a title for this chapter lol) **

The gang had arrived on campus at Kadic, Odd still fuming at the others, to discover that there was no school at school. That is to say, there were no _classes_ going on. In fact, there was not a soul around. Finally figuring out that it was late, they just assumed everyone was in their dorms.   
"Hey, guys," Yumi spoke up. "Aelita and I should really start thinking about heading back to my place. My parents have got to be worried sick."  
Everyone sort of looked like they didn't want to disband the group after such a gruesome day. As if each other's presence could verify that what just happened DID indeed happen. Aelita reluctantly let go of Jeremie's hand that she had been squeezing rather tightly.  
"I guess you're right," she said. They started to leave, but Jeremie stopped them.  
"Wait! Tomorrow's Saturday. Why don't we all meet up at your house? I've got a few things to say about today's events." he interjected.  
"Fine by me," said Ulrich.  
"Sure, why not?" Odd added. Jeremie smiled big.  
"That settles it. How about around three thirty?"  
"Okay, great! I'll call you all in the morning to tell you what my folks say," Yumi said, obviously glad not to just end it like that. They separated, Yumi and Aelita going to the Ishiyama residence, and the rest going to their respectable dorm rooms.  
Once they reached the dormitory building, they were ambushed. By, who else, none other than Sissi and her gang.  
"Er, um, Sissi!" Ulrich exclaimed. "What are you, um, doing up? It's midnight."  
"I'd like to know the same thing! First it was all weird in the lunch room with those... those _things_ and then you guys just left! Where did you go! The whole school was evacuated until they sent out the Marines to get rid of the… cube monster things."  
"We had to do something… important. Wait a minute, they sent out the Marines!" (Ok, Ok. I know it's France, but I'm an American! Give me a break here! Okay, I looked it up. France does have Marines.)  
"Well, yeah. What did you expect us to do? Throw a dinner plate at them? Shoot them with a nail gun?"  
"Actually, yes. Yes I did. We do that all the time…" Ulrich mumbled under his breath. Nicolas and Herb were sneering from the sides of Sissi like the cronies they are.  
"Okay, that's over now, so whatever. We're tired and we need to get to bed. See ya." Odd said, rushing his friends along past Sissi's group and into the other hallway.  
"How rude! First they come sneaking in at midnight and then they just LEAVE. Hey, wait a minute! THEY NEVER TOLD ME WHERE THEY WENT! YOU GET BACK HERE!" she shouted after them. To her dismay, they were already locked in their rooms.

_Ring, Ring!_ Ulrich reached for his cell phone.  
_Ugh,_ he thought, _who would be calling at this hour? Oh yeah! Yumi!_  
"Hello?"  
"Hey, Ulrich—It's me, Yumi."  
"I think I'd recognize your voice. So, how'd your parents take it?"  
"They didn't. They were out at a party all night and Aelita and I snuck back in right before they came home."  
"Wow. What did they say about us coming over?"  
"My folks said you could spend the night, 'just as long as there's no _bakasawagi_ going on."  
"…What does that mean?"  
"I'm pretty sure you can guess. Anyway, You'll have to sleep in the den though because Aelita's got the guestroom. Girls gotta have their space, you know?"  
"Yeah, yeah. Hold on, lemme tell Odd." Ulrich took the phone from his ear and threw a pillow at his friend.  
"Hey, hey, hey! Leave me alone! Do you have any idea what time—" Odd began.  
"Yumi called. She told me her parents said we can spend the night!" whispered Ulrich.  
"Oh, okay. Well, I'm going back to sleep now. Night! Er… Morning! Whatever!" He mumbled. Ulrich rolled his eyes and put his cellular phone back up to his ear.  
"I told him. Did you call Jeremie yet?"  
"Yeah, I did."  
"Alright. See you later."  
"Okay."  
"Okay."  
"Bye!"  
"Bye…"  
"Talk to you later!"  
"Okay.  
"Alright."  
"Good night!"  
"Night."  
"Night."  
"Ulrich?"  
"Yes?"  
"Hang up."  
"Okay. Bye, Yumi!"  
"BYE!"  
"Bye bye!"  
"Okay, If you don't hang up, I will!"  
"Fine! Jeez."  
Silence.  
"ULRICH!"  
"OKAY! Bye Yums!"  
"Yums?"  
"Yeah."  
"Ookay. Never call me that again. Bye."  
"Bye!"  
"HANG UP!"  
"K, Yums!"  
"DON'T CALL ME THAT! GOODBYE, ULRICH STERN!"  
"Bye Yum Yums!"  
"I'm gonna kill you!"  
"Heh heh. Sorry. I'm gonna hang up now. Good night, fair Yumi. I dare not speak again till morrow's light."  
"Okay, first I was 'Yums', now I'm 'fair'? And knock it off with the fake English accent."  
"I jest thee not! Is my tongue displeasing to milady?"  
"Ugh!" Yumi hung up. Ulrich smiled and didn't move the phone for at least five minutes. Then he fell back asleep. The next thing he knew, something that smelled a lot like dog breath was licking his face.  
"Get off, Kiwi! I'm up, I'm up!" he said. Odd was standing by his bed, fully dressed, and laughing his head off.  
"Come on, it's 3:00 and we have to get to the administrative building so Yumi's parents can sign us out," Odd pointed to the clock. Ulrich grabbed a set of clothes, which of course included a light green T-shirt, a dark green overshirt, and baggy green cargo pants. (It's a wonder he's not Irish!) He rushed off to the boys' showers. Jeremie came in through the door that Ulrich left wide open.  
"Knock, knock!" he said cheerfully, walking in and sitting on Ulrich's un-made bed. Jeremie started humming and bounced up and down on the mattress.  
"Wow, Jeremie. You sure are peppy today," commented Odd, raising his eyebrow.  
"I met Aelita this morning and we took a walk. It's quite refreshing," Jeremie replied. He took out a piece of candy, threw it up in the air, and caught it in his mouth.   
"So, what, are you guys going out now or something?" Jeremie blushed.  
"Um…"  
"I'm guessing that's a yes."  
"Well, I don't know."  
"…You didn't ask her out yet, did you?"  
"No."  
"Figures," Odd fell back onto his bed. Kiwi hopped up and lied down next to his owner's head. He grabbed his pants from yesterday and pulled a certain slip of paper from the pocket.  
"Do you think I should ask Hope if she wants to come? I mean, we should treat her like a friend, right?" asked Odd, holding the slip of paper up to his chest.  
"I don't think so. I mean, Yumi only asked if we could come, and besides—What if you call her and she's in Ol' Doc's office?"  
"I think she should at least hear whatever you're going to say about what happened."  
"Hm… I suppose so. How about this: we wait until late and then call her and put her on speakerphone?"  
"I'd rather have her there in the flesh."  
"I know you do, but I just don't think it's possible right now." Jeremie said. Just then, Ulrich walked back in, his hair still a little wet from the shower.  
"Ready to go?"  
"Yeah, I guess." Odd put the slip of paper back into his pocket and stood up.  
"We have to go now, buddy. You be good, you hear?" he said, kneeling down to Kiwi. He barked in reply, and Odd petted him on the head.  
"Let's go."


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7 Slumber Party**

All the boys were ready and walked down the hallway to the staircase with backpacks full of clothes and toothbrushes, hearts pounding. It was going to be fun at Yumi's—they had never spent more than a couple hours there. So each and every one was excited. Ulrich was excited about spending time with Yumi, Jeremie was excited to see Aelita again (after only a few hours. Jeremie, you dog.). Odd was just plain excited. The trio stepped outside into the gleaming daylight. No monsters in sight. No military troops marching around. All was peaceful. There was a steady breeze, carrying the scent of the park to their noses. They saw the Ishiyamas' car in the parking lot and walked faster to the administrative building. Ulrich opened the door and let everyone else in. Jeremie said hi to the secretary. And finally, Mr. and Mrs. Ishiyama and their daughter were waiting patiently in chairs near the front desk.  
"Hi, guys!" Yumi said, with a bright smile. They smiled back. "Hey, Ulrich!" She jumped up and gave him a hug, her arms hanging around his neck. Yumi and Ulrich soon realized that they were displaying affection in front of everyone so they separated and blushed. Mr. Ishiyama glanced at Ulrich but said nothing.  
"Did you leave Aelita back at your house all alone?" asked Jeremie.  
"No. My grandma is still there to keep her company," Yumi answered. Ulrich raised an eyebrow.  
"Grandma Ishiyama is visiting? Uh-oh," he said. Jeremie and Odd snapped their heads back and forth from Yumi to Ulrich, confused as to why he knew something they didn't.  
"My mother is… well, let's say she has quite an interesting personality," Mrs. Ishiyama said as if she could read their minds. Mr. Ishiyama stood up and signed the sign-out form. The secretary looked towards the boys.  
"Your parents? Did they give you permission?" she asked.  
"My father called," Jeremie said.  
"They said yes," Ulrich replied.  
"New Zealand, remember? Mom said she didn't mind if I left campus a long time ago." answered Odd. The blonde-haired secretary smiled and straightened her glasses.  
"Okay, then! Have a nice time! Remember, you have to be back by Monday. School starts at 7 AM so don't stay up all night partying." Mr. Ishiyama was about to object and say, "No, I don't think so," but everyone else was already heading to the car.

The car pulled into the driveway of the Ishiyama residence and came to a stop. Four doors opened, and six people stepped out. Six people walked to the front door. One person put a key in the knob and opened the door. A short, old woman with gray hair put in a bun in long brown dress stood in the doorway. "Ah, daughter and son-in-law! You bring more children!" she said, smiling. Now, this woman had a very heavy accent. When she said "son-in-law", it sounded like "sonny-law". Mrs. Ishiyama turned looked very embarrassed, although Yumi greeted her with a "Hi, Grandma". Grandma Ishiyama frowned.  
"Whassamatta wichu? You no wanna come in? Shame, shame. Red hair girl and me make my specialty! It's very yummy. You, boy with tall hair. You hungry, yes?" she asked, pointing at Odd. He nodded and stepped inside.  
"You see? I know when someone hungry. This boy looks very hungry. Come in! Squid tentacles getting cold." Grandma Ishiyama said. Everyone went inside, Mr. Ishiyama hung up his coat, and the kids dumped their backpacks on the floor. Odd looked at Ulrich with wide eyes.  
"_SQUID_ tentacles!" he whispered. Ulrich smiled and rubbed his stomach in a circular motion. Long before they reached the kitchen, a peculiar smell came from around the corner. It was quite hard to place exactly what it was. Finally, the kitchen lay before them. Aelita was washing her hands in the sink, and the smell was stronger than ever. There was a bowl full of something that was golden brown and crunchy-looking in odd shapes, and plates in a stack next to it. Everyone sat down.  
"That looks good, Ms… um…" Jeremie started.  
"Just call me Grandma Ishiyama. You are young man who red head girl talk about all day, yes?" Jeremie looked over at Aelita and she blushed. (Aw, ain't that cute) When they turned their attention back to the food, Odd was already finishing off the last piece.  
"Mmm, that was GOOD! So, where's the squid tentacles? I'm ready for them!" Odd asked. Grandma Ishiyama got very angry.  
"YOU JUST ATE ALL THE SQUID TENTACLES!" she said, smacking him in the back of the head.  
"Oww! Sorry! I didn't know!" apologized Odd. He rubbed his head. Grandma Ishiyama folded her arms and started mumbling incoherently.  
"Stupid big hair boy… eat all my squid tentacles…" Mr. Ishiyama put his hand on her shoulder.  
"Why don't we just order pizza?"  
"Sounds good to me!" Jeremie spoke up.  
"Yeah, sure!" Ulrich said.  
"Uh-huh!" Yumi said.

Mr. Ishiyama brought back three boxes of pizza: one for the adults, one for Odd and Aelita, and one for the rest. The kids brought their boxes into the living room and shut the door behind them.  
"Well, I think it's too early to start talking about _you-know-what_," said Jeremie. He grabbed a slice of pizza and leaned back in the couch. (And suddenly, the song "Lean Back" by Terror Squad featuring Fat Joe started playing! ) "What do you want to do?"  
"I wanted to make a certain phone call to a certain person so that certain person could come to a certain location, but NOOOO!" Odd grumbled, folding his arms and picking pieces of pepperoni off of the pizza. Aelita grabbed two slices and practically inhaled them.  
"You'd better stop eating like that or you're gonna start gaining weight," commented Odd, which made her think for about three seconds before grabbing another slice. The boy in dark purple (mauve? lol) rolled his eyes.  
"Wanna watch TV?" Ulrich suggested. Jeremie shrugged and grabbed the remote.  
"What's 'Tee-Vee'?" asked Aelita with a big "HUH?" plastered on her face.  
"Television. It's a means of communication. People watch programs, movies, and newscasts on them. It's meant for entertainment." he explained, flicking it on. There was a cartoon on with a cat trying to whack a mouse with a spatula. (Can you guess what that is? )  
"Wow! It's like a drawing, but it's moving! With sound! Fascinating!" Aelita exclaimed, gluing her eyes to the television set.  
"I'd sit back if I were you. Or else you might end up with big, thick glasses like Jeremie!" said Yumi, putting her fingers around her eyes to imitate a pair of glasses.  
"Hey!" Jeremie frowned.  
"Heh heh, sorry. Couldn't resist." Aelita chuckled and sat back a little._Click!_ Jeremie changed the channel. It was a music video. _Click!_ A news show. _Click!_ A sitcom with a woman with red hair and a very feminine man in a black suit. (Oh, the references! ) _Click!_  
"Jeremie," said the ex-virtual being, "can't you stay at one channel for more than three seconds? I'm sure whoever made those worked very hard on it and would appreciate it if someone watched it."  
"No, Aelita, he cannot. Sadly, he is a male, and it is physically impossible for one to do that." Yumi stated. All of the boys got pretty steamed and objected.  
"Jeez, Yumi! What is up with you today?" Ulrich asked. Yumi looked at him and put on a really sad puppy-dog face. Ulrich rolled his eyes at her. Odd looked up from the TV guide he was reading.  
"Hey, there's a movie marathon coming on soon! It's called, 'The Most Traumatizing Monster Movies of All Time'! They promise it will emotionally damage small children. Sounds cool! It's on Channel 27!" he announced, snatching the remote from Jeremie and switching to Channel 27. A very scary-looking man appeared on the screen.  
"Welcome," he said in an eerie voice, "to The Most Traumatizing Monster Movies of All Time. If you have weak constitutions, are pregnant, or under the age of 10, we advise you to change the channel immediately or else you may wind up in a mental hospital with severe neurosis. And now, the first movie in our line up: The Curse of the Mutant Alien Zombie Soccer Moms from the Future." Jeremie 'eep'-ed.  
"Um, Aelita, I'm just letting you know that this will not be a good experience if you end up not liking monster movies. That movie was banned in 15 countries because of extreme horror, the Pope announced it 'the movie from Hell', and I'm pretty sure that's the why my Aunt Lily died of a heart attack." Aelita looked at him wide-eyed.  
"I'm just kidding! My Aunt Lily is still alive. But the other parts were true." he assured her. The movie started and Odd turned off the lights. A loud scream came from the television set.  
"Someone help! Please, help!" A woman in tattered clothes said, running into a police department.  
"What's the problem, miss?" asked an officer.  
"It was so horrible! Those hideous, terrible things came right down from the sky! They came in their strange SUVs with glowing lights and equipment in the trunks and landed in our backyard!" The police officer grabbed hold of her and shook her out of hysteria.  
"Who came? Who came!" The screen letter boxed and the camera focused on the woman's mouth.  
"**The Mutant Alien Zombie Soccer Moms!**" An unearthly, scary, Twilight Zone-ey theme song played and the movie title appeared on the screen.

It was 11 PM when the movie marathon was finally over. Odd was looking rather pale, shaking nervously. Aelita had jumped up on Jeremie's lap and was looking at the screen with wide eyes. Jeremie was practically hyperventilating, and Yumi's hand was up to her wide-open mouth in shock. Ulrich was squeezing Yumi in a panicked death hug and was whimpering like a small child.  
"Ahem… well, I suppose it's late enough to start our little discussion about EMPIRE and what we're going to do about it. Let me go see if the adults are still awake," Jeremie said, beginning to stand up. Yumi grabbed his arm.  
"No, that's okay. They were asleep a long time ago. I checked on them when I went to the bathroom during The Great Grandmother of Chucky," she said.  
"I thought you went during I was A Pre-Teenaged Blob," commented Ulrich.  
"You're both wrong!" shouted Odd. "It was during It came from Bob's Fish Market!" Suddenly, everyone began arguing about when Yumi went to the bathroom.  
"ENOUGH!" the boy genius yelled. "What does it matter anyway? Now, about EMPIRE. It seems that their plan is to take control of planet Earth. Wild idea as it seems, with the power of the super calculator, the time-space modifying device, and the materialization program, it just might be possible. Obviously, Dr. Gibson is in need of mental help. And we can't have a world with crazy tyrants ruling everything in a so-called 'idealistic society'. We need a world… free from danger. It's our job to stop them."  
"But how will we stop them? We're just six kids and EMPIRE is an army!" Odd asked.  
"I know that. And I also know that we can't exactly be everywhere at once…"  
"_You_ can't," corrected Ulrich.  
"AS I WAS SAYING, we can't be all over the place to stop them if they decide to invade Russia or something. All the countries have militaries, of course, but with the new technology and monsters Dr. Gibson can create, they can be unstoppable. But, we still have a glimmer of hope. They control everything through Lyoko, and if we could go into Lyoko and fight them from the inside, it's possible we can shut off their greatest resource. Also, Hope has told me about EMPIRE's next plans. They want to expand Lyoko so that it covers the entire globe, so it would be almost like another dimension. It would also be easier to materialize monsters on the spot that way."  
"YOU talked to Hope!" shouted a certain spiky haired blonde. Jeremie ignored him.  
"I'm afraid I don't understand the concept. What do you mean by that? And how would they accomplish that? Lyoko is contained in the computer, right?" inquired Yumi.  
"Yes, that's true. In a way. I should know. But Lyoko is already a kind of a parallel universe. It's just computer-enhanced. The super computer contains the power necessary to run Lyoko, and also acts as a portal into the parallel universe. It's hard to understand, but that's not the point," Aelita said.  
"The point is that we may be able to reverse the process that would allow monsters to phase into the real world. It is virtualization, but by a different method. We could be virtualized from anywhere if we had the proper technology." Jeremie said.  
"Don't you mean WE can be virtualized from anywhere?" asked Ulrich.  
"No, I'm coming too. There's no super calculator for me to operate anymore, remember? So, we will be fighting them both on Lyoko and in the real world. They no doubt would have their own soldiers virtualized in Lyoko, and we need to thwart their plans for this world as well. That would be easier to accomplish since we could, in theory, virtualize into Lyoko, go to a certain point, and then de-virtualize and end up anywhere we want."  
"Okay, that all sounds fine and good, but where are we going to get that new technology?" asked Odd.  
"From EMPIRE, of course. We need to steal some of their tech and then reverse engineer it. Hope will help, but we need more than that. That's why we need to call her." Jeremie finished. Then there was the loud squeak of the door opening.  
"Who's there?" asked Odd, a bit frightened.  
"It's me," said Hope, flipping on the light. "I have some really bad— " Aelita hiccuped. And hiccuped. And hiccuped more and more, uncontrollably.  
"Oh no," whispered the double agent, turning pale. "It's started already!"


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8 Time to go**

"_What's_ started? And how did you get in here?" asked Yumi. Hope glanced behind her.  
"No time to explain—we have to get out of here NOW!" she shouted. She went to Odd, grabbed his arm, and ran out the door.  
"If you value your life, COME ON!" yelled Hope as they ran out the door. In the kitchen, Hope quickly poured Aelita a glass of water, and dashed towards the front door as soon as the last drop was gone. Everything was happening at the speed of light. Once outside, Hope revealed a key, stuck it in the keyhole of the door of the family car, and flung open the door. She ushered the others inside and slammed the door closed.  
"Where are we going? What about my parents and my grandmother?" Yumi was starting to get very, very worried, and it was obvious. Ulrich grabbed her hand.  
"Don't worry about them. Right now, they should be on an airplane to New York City," Hope explained, starting the car and pulling out of the driveway.  
"New York! As in, like, the United _States_? What is going on!" shouted the Japanese girl. Odd was looking very impressed, though, in the passenger's seat next to the ex-EMPIRE counter-intelligence agent.  
"You can drive? But… you're not eighteen! …Are you? Aww man, I thought—er, I mean…" he stuttered nervously. Hope glanced at him.  
"Actually, no, I'm not. See, when you're an EMPIRE agent, you get… certain perks," she said. She began rummaging through her pack, and the car swerved. Hope regained control, and turned back to him, showing off a driver's license that resembled her, only a bit older.  
"But… that doesn't look like you," commented Odd, blinking. Hope smiled, and pressed a button on her belt. Her entire figure changed, suddenly, in one second, a wave of green light sweeping upward and downward from the center of her body. An older version of Hope sat in the seat next to Odd.  
"Holographic cloaking. Pretty cool, huh?" she said, turning back to the road. She transformed again, changed streets, and started going back the way they came.  
"Um… what are you doing?" asked Aelita.  
"Trying to confuse them. This way, they can't follow the car's exhaust signature."  
"Who is 'them'? And could you please explain to us why we had to suddenly leave our house at 11:30 at night and Yumi's parents are on their way to America?"  
"Well, I guess I should now. You see, I guess my false records of you guys being transferred to the Southern Paris prison camp weren't that good, because they kind of found out that you weren't thee when they went to…" she broke off there for a moment.  
" I wasn't suspected, of course. They sent troops out to the school and to your houses. Except for Odd's, it being in New Zealand and they never quite found out where they were from. So I had to beat them to it, and provide your families with fake passports and plane tickets. Before they got there."  
"I see. That's why my parents were gone. But how did they get to the airport since we're in our car?" asked Yumi.  
"This isn't your car. Cloaking, remember?" The car shifted into a blue SUV. Hope looked down at her watch. "Yeah, the troops should be arriving in five… four… three… two…" A loud BOOM sounded, and the ground shook. Yumi looked in horror out the back window as her house went up in flames, debris flying everywhere.  
"Oh, my God…" said Jeremie, eyes wide.  
"You still didn't explain what started and who 'they' are," reminded Ulrich, consoling a crying Yumi.  
"Ah, yes. That. Well, when Doctor Gibson found out about you guys 'escaping' from the holding base, he got pretty steamed. So he decided to take over this sector of France. 'First Boulogne-Billancourt, and then, the world!' He makes me sick. And 'they' are the new monsters Gibson whipped up," Hope said. Odd was staring out his window.  
"You mean like those really big scary things that are right behind us?" Hope twisted her head around and gasped. There were incredibly huge metal machines that looked sort of like ticked off wolves with glowing red E's on them. They leaped over the car and landed in front of them. The ground shook from the sudden impact of their tremendous weight. Hope slammed on the brakes and the car swiveled around to a stop.  
"Um… good… doggies?" she said meekly. They opened their mouths and a laser beam charged within them.   
"Floor it!" Ulrich shouted. Hope obeyed and the car began to move again. Only… it was headed in the wrong direction.  
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" exclaimed Odd, looking at Hope with an exasperated expression.  
"Just trust me." The boy slowly nodded and then looked forward again. They sped forward towards the monsters and passed under the one that was closest. Hope took something out of her pack, unbuckled her seat belt and opened the sunroof.  
"Odd, take the wheel!" she commanded. He hesitated.  
"But.. I don't know how to—"  
"Just pretend it's like a video game at the arcade!" Ulrich shouted from the back. Odd and Hope maneuvered so that she was in the passenger seat and he was at the wheel. They shifted so that the car still had its momentum for the split second no one was pressing the gas pedal. Odd nervously grabbed onto the wheel and held on, shaking. Hope stood up and the object she had removed from her pack expanded in her hand into a round ball. (It's NOT a pokeball if that's what you're thinking )  
"Here, doggie!" Hope taunted. "Fetch!"  
She threw the ball at the wolf-machine and it exploded when it made contact. One monster was out of commission.

The door to the ex-lab of Jeremie and his friends opened up and an EMPIRE official walked in and saluted.  
"Sir!" he said. Dr. Gibson turned around in his chair and stood up.  
"At ease. What is it, Patterson?" asked Dr. Gibson, walking over to the holographic projector which now showed one map of Lyoko and another map of France, with little connections and data flowing back and forth between them.  
"I'm reporting the results of the recent mission," he said, walking over to him. Gibson eyed him suspiciously.  
"You're not authorized to report to me. You're just a guard." Patterson sort of held his chin up in pride.  
"I've been promoted to an executive, sir," he replied, positively beaming.  
"Ah. Congratulations. Now, report. I am a very busy man, as you know," Gibson turned back to the holographic projections, took out a stylus, and began working with them.  
"Well, sir, the mission was mostly a success. There are no signs of life at the destroyed Ishiyama, Belpois, and Stern residences. The troops await your order to proceed and seize the city."  
Dr. Gibson once again turned back around.  
"What do you _mean_, 'mostly a success'?" he asked sternly. Patterson sort of stepped back.  
"W-well, um, sir... We could not find the Della Robbia family…" Dr. Gibson became enraged and slammed his fist into the wall.  
"THEY GO TO A _BOARDING SCHOOL_! They may not BE in the city! All you have to do is check the goddamn RECORDS!"  
"That's the thing, sir. The school records of the children have vanished from both Kadic and our databases. And a search for any Della Robbias in France showed no results."  
"WHAT? That's not possible!" Gibson marched back to the super calculator.  
"I'm sorry, sir, but it's true."  
"No matter. I have the original copies on my system." the twisted doctor began to type on the keyboard.  
"This… this can't be! They're gone! I had them all password-protected. I should be the only one who has access to them!"  
"And there's one more thing, sir. The children… they've disappeared."


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9 Left Behind**

Hope turned a corner and the metallic beast barreled after her. Thanks to the mobility of the small car, she was able to safely make it down the street. But the monster was much less agile, and turned too slowly. She pressed down on the gas and the car accelerated as yet another explosion went off behind them.  
"What makes you think that people WON'T notice the giant monsters and explosions going off everywhere?" Ulrich asked questioningly.  
"Oh, they'll notice, alright. But they won't know what's really happening. Well, at least until EMPIRE annexes the city," replied Hope, turning her eyes back to the road. Yumi had stopped crying, but her face was still wet with tears.  
"Where are we going, anyway?" she asked. "New York, right?"  
"Well, first, I have to take you guys to the airport and then head back to the factory so I can get transferred from here to the base in New York. As well as… steal a copy of the plans for Project Lyoko 2.0. As for the hardware for constructing the devices….I know a guy who knows a guy whose cousin used to work for the Research and Development Department in New York."  
Hope turned onto the Autoroute (the French highway) and suddenly a screen under the car's radio flickered to life.  
"Attention all EMPIRE personnel. Five children; Jeremie Belpois, Ulrich Stern, Yumi Ishiyama, Odd Della Robbia, and… an illegal immigrant only known as 'Aelita Lyoko', have escaped from an EMPIRE holding base. They seriously endanger our organization for reasons I am not authorized to release and must be **shot on sight** by any EMPIRE soldier, operative, or guard. Images of these children are now being uploaded and will appear on your screen," A shady looking man said grimly while holding a few sheets of paper as if he were on a news program. Behind him, there was an odd-looking flag behind him with an even stranger symbol of the outline of a sphere with lines encircling it and a large letter 'E' beneath it.  
The Lyoko gang sat in shock as pictures of them appeared on the screen. Hope, her jaw wide open, almost swerved off of the road. Yumi began to silently cry. Ulrich had a flabbergasted expression on his face. Aelita was staring in disbelief.  
"No…" Odd said, looking pale.  
"This can't be happening," Hope said, pulling into a rest area. (#1 I don't know if they have those in France, let alone on that particular part of the Autoroute, but this is Fan FICTION, remember? ) "This just can't be happening."  
She took out a cell phone and began dialing a number. Aelita glanced at a brown radio clipped to Hope's brown utility belt (ugh I can't use that word without making it sound corny… NOT the superhero kind. The REGULAR kind.)  
"Um… why do they use that radio if you have cell phones?"  
"This is my PERSONAL mobile phone. Most officers don't get paid enough to have their own."  
"Talk about an unstable organization," Ulrich said to Jeremie, who nodded. "If they don't get paid well enough, they're going to quit or go on strike or overthrow or impeach or whatever it is they do to your leaders." The gang looked towards Ulrich. Not because they were particularly interested in what he had to say about EMPIRE, but because he said 'your leaders' to Hope. She didn't hear him anyway.  
"Hey," she said into the phone, "it's me." A pause.  
"Yeah, I know, I know. You didn't… okay. Good." Odd, curious as he was, leaned in a little closer to hear a teenage male's voice talking on the other end.  
"Uh-huh. Yeah. Shut up! What? Oh. Of course I did. SHUT UP! Talk louder. I can barely hear you. You are? Oh. Ok. Just make sure you… you did? Alright. SHUT UP!"  
The others were wondering who exactly it was she had contacted. It sounded more like she was gossiping with a friend rather than calling a secret underground resistance fighter.  
"Are you SURE? No. Yes. SHUT THE SMURF UP! Wait, hold on a second." She took the phone off of her ear.  
"Aelita?" she asked.  
"Yes?"  
"What size clothes do you wear?"  
"…"  
Everyone looked at Hope. It was such an odd question to be asking at a time like this, but Aelita answered anyway.  
"Uh… I don't know."  
"You don't… know," Hope said as if she had just said she didn't have a left arm. "She doesn't know."  
Hope had returned to her cell phone conversation.  
"Okay, I'll ask him." She once again turned around. "Jeremie?"  
"What?"  
"Do YOU know what size clothes she wears? I mean, you did make that outfit for her, right?"  
"Well… no… I got the designs from an Internet website."  
"And you don't remember what sizes they were!"  
"…No." Hope stared blankly at him. _Wow,_ she thought, _The guy's in love with her and he doesn't even know her clothes sizes. Note to self: Make sure boyfriend knows how to buy me clothes._  
"Oh, wait!" Aelita said.  
"Hmm?"  
"Apparently, clothes come with these little itchy tags attached to the inside of them—" Hope thrust the phone at her.  
"Here, tell him." Aelita took the cell phone and told the mysterious 'him'. (Sorry, I didn't feel like looking up what girls clothes sizes would be appropriate for her and I'm a guy so how am I supposed to know! lol) Once Hope had the phone back, she turned back around and began talking again.  
"Okay. No.. NO! SHUT. UP." Hope grinned after a couple seconds.  
"Alright. So you WILL be there, right? Okay. I love you too. Bye." Odd sort of gasped in surprise and immediately averted his gaze out of the passenger window. His heart sank.  
"What?"  
"…Nothing. Who was that?" he asked suspiciously, with no indication of happiness in almost a dead tone. Although he had a good guess at the answer.  
"Oh… a guy. He's helping us. Okay, it's off to the airport. Here's your tickets."  
Hope handed them all the tickets.  
"Why are you giving them to us now?" asked Yumi as she glanced it over.  
"How do you think you're supposed to get to New York? Walk?" Hope chuckled. Yumi was confused.  
"I'm confused," she said. "We're not at the airport…"  
"Oh, right, sorry! Well, um.. you guys can't really be seen with me for much longer. They're going to start looking for me and wondering where I am… it'd be too dangerous. You guys might have to… you know… hoof it."  
"You said we weren't walking," mumbled Ulrich.  
"Now, everybody out! I'm afraid I must depart. We shall meet again. You know.. partings are such sweet sorrow and all that Shakespearean crap."  
The girl practically shoved everyone out of the car, slammed the doors shut, and drove off.  
"I just realized something," commented Jeremie.  
"What's that?" asked Aelita.  
"We don't have any clothes. Or anything."  
"Maybe that's why she was asking me about clothes sizes. They might have more things there in New York."  
"I guess you're right," Jeremie said, smiling. They began to start walking, and suddenly stopped.  
"Wait," said Odd. "Where's Ulrich?"


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10 I Spy**

Ulrich sat crouched down on the floor of the car and he felt as if he were being pushed along by the car, rather than hiding in it. He was disoriented because he couldn't see where they were going, but it was necessary.  
_I know there's something strange about that girl. Why did she suddenly show up and help us like that? And when we were being chased by those monsters… How did they know to look for this car? Why didn't they attack when we drove under them? How did she know so much, if she's supposed to be a guard? And about that… they seemed to respect her too much at the factory. It just doesn't add up._ his thoughts were interrupted by the car suddenly stopping and the car door opening.  
_We must be there already._ Ulrich slowly rose and was surprised their location. _The school? What is she doing here? Hey… her cell phone!_  
He made a grab for it and quickly returned to the back seat, just in case she had turned around. Ulrich turned it on and went to her last calls list.  
"Hmm… some number with a country code. Probably from America," he said to himself. An idea popped into his head. He cleared his throat, calmed himself, and then pressed the TALK key.  
"What," said a male voice on the other end. It didn't even sound like he was asking a question. Ulrich decided that he wasn't very polite.  
"Who is this?" Ulrich asked, disguising his voice.  
"Who wants to know?"  
"This is Commander… Jerome, EMPIRE Division D."  
The boy on the other end said nothing.  
"Now tell me your name, soldier." Ulrich was beginning to have fun, acting like a military officer.  
"James."  
"Your FULL name, please."  
He heard a sigh.  
"General James Lawrence… Gibraltar, Commander."  
Ulrich held back a gasp.   
_G-General!_ he thought. _Wait. There's no way he could be a general. He must be testing me. To see if I'm really an EMPIRE official._  
"I don't appreciate being lied to, Gibraltar." The pseudo-officer said with a sharp tone. No response. "Now tell me your REAL name."  
"My name is James Lawrence Gibraltar, but I am only a private, sir. I apologize for lying to you. I suspected someone impersonating an officer and I wanted to see if I could expose them. What is your reason for contacting me, sir?"  
Ulrich smiled in personal triumph. He'd actually fooled him into thinking he's a Commander!  
"I wanted to ask you if you recently had a conversation with a guard from the Headquarters, Hope Johnson."  
Silence again.  
"I ASKED YOU A QUESTION, PRIVATE!"  
"No, sir! I've never heard of a Hope Johnson, sir!"  
Liar.  
"Very well. One more question, private. Is your current post supposed to be in the United States?"  
"…Of course not, sir! You know that the EMPIRE army has not yet spread out of Europe, sir!"  
Ulrich smirked.  
"Why are you lying to me again, soldier?"  
This time the boy hung up. Ulrich wasn't sure what to think about this one. Hope said she was going to get transferred to America, yet EMPIRE didn't move out of Europe yet. Whoever she was talking to is a liar; he didn't even know if that was his real name. But then again, if they're supposed to be part of an underground resistance, of course he would lie. He hadn't accomplished anything. No… he had. He had done something terrible. If Hope was really telling the truth and this wasn't some fake scheme…Ulrich might've just jeopardized the whole thing!  
_Ugh! I'm such an idiot!_ he thought. He'd just told whoever that boy was that the bigwigs back home knew something about the resistance. They didn't, of course, but now that he thinks they do, he might shut down the entire operation! If that happens… then who can we go to? Hope can't do all this for us herself… what if she backs out, afraid for her life? _No. No, I won't put everyone in danger like this. I won't let Yumi cry again…_ Ulrich knew what he had to do. He had to call the boy back, tell him that it was all a lie. But what if he didn't believe him? And then, surely he would question why Ulrich was so suspicious if he did believe him. What if he had reason to suspect them of something? What if it WAS a fake scheme? What if, what if, what if? Ulrich sat back in his seat, physically drained by his dilemma and confusion. Lucky he did, because he heard the car door open. Ulrich flew to the floor of the car. Wait… someone got in with her! He listened closely.  
"… would. I'd do it in a heartbeat." said the stranger. He thought he recognized the voice.  
"Do you know the kinds of trouble I could get in for this? That YOU could get in?" Hope said, shutting her door. Ulrich heard the sound of metal jingling. He thought it was the keys.  
"I don't care! I want answers. But most of all, I want to see my—" the stranger began, and the rest of the sentence was cut off by Hope turning on the engine. The car began to drive off. "—again."  
"Hey… where's my cell phone?" Hope asked.  
"How am I supposed to know?" asked the stranger. The voice sounded feminine.  
_Oh, no!_ Ulrich thought, mentally smacking himself. He still had the phone in his hand! _I'd better get rid of it before she looks back here._  
So, when Hope turned to look at the road the next time, Ulrich utilized his quick reflexes and tossed the phone up front, and it landed silently. He cringed and waited for someone to comment and look back. No one did.  
"Oh, there it is. Hmm. I could've sworn I left it in my seat…"  
Ulrich was relieved. After a few minutes, he felt brave enough to slowly lift up his head to look. When he did, he was looking towards the back seat. He saw two eyes staring back at him. Ulrich resisted the urge to cry out in surprise. It was Kiwi! Thank god. …Kiwi!  
_Damn! Don't start barking! Don't start barking!_ he though frantically. Fortunately for him, Kiwi only licked his face and then jumped up to the front. _And to think, I used to hate that dog._  
Soon, they pulled up in the parking lot near the edge of the land before reaching the factory's island.  
"You have to stay here. Make yourself invisible. If I get caught with you, everyone's toast. Got it?"  
"Whatever. Just hurry up," said the stranger.  
"If I were you," Hope said, narrowing her eyes. "I wouldn't rush me."  
She went outside, changed the holographic cloaking of the car, and started towards the bridge.  
"Hmph!" said the female voice. It struck horror through Ulrich like a bolt of lightning. He'd recognize that 'Hmph!' anywhere. It was Sissi.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11 Sleeping Beauty** (Don't worry, I'm not giving up on the YxU relationship!)

_How could SISSI be in here?_ Ulrich wondered, now trying harder than ever to hold his breath and remain as quiet as humanly possible. She now took out a small makeup kit and began adorning herself in the mirror.  
"There," Sissi said, smiling and kissing at the air. Ulrich wanted to die. He was trapped in the car with the one person he would least like to be with, and there was nothing he could do about it.  
_Kill me now,_ he thought, sighing in despair.  
"Now I've _got_ to look pretty enough for my Ulrich dear to come running towards me after that crazy freak brings me to him," she said out loud.  
_You wish. Not all of the makeup in the world would make me do that._ Ulrich was suddenly angry with her. She had called who may be their only hope in the world crazy and a freak. He almost immediately felt ashamed. After all, he had been suspicious of her. Sissi was rummaging through her purse.  
_She probably doesn't even realize the importance of what's going on._  
"There it is!" the girl exclaimed, taking out a pink book and a fancy gift pen. She sat in her seat, scratching at the surface of her paper contentedly, occasionally sighing to herself. When she was done, she lied back in her seat and took out a photograph. It was Ulrich's school picture. He despised that picture. His mother had sent him a ridiculously embarrassing suit to wear and he had to comb his usually messy hair. It didn't look a thing like what he normally looked like from day to day. From what he could see, the picture had various smudges all over it, apparently from Sissi's lip-gloss. It made him feel awkward and sick at the same time. She hugged the photograph, let the seat down, and closed her eyes. Ulrich panicked. He was on the other side of the back-seat floor crushed under her seat, unable to reposition himself. If she were to open her eyes, she would see him and he would be caught. In a few minutes, however, she was sound asleep. Ulrich had to remind himself of what time it was. He checked his watch. 3:30 AM. (I know that on the show he doesn't wear a watch, but for the sake of the moment, let's say he does.)  
_Well, what now, Ulrich?_ he asked himself. _You're trapped in a car, awaiting inevitable doom by either Sissi waking up or Hope returning to the car._ Ulrich put his arms on the backseat and the front seat, and sat up. His hand brushed over the pink book that Sissi had wrote in.  
_This must be that diary Yumi told me about._ He grabbed it, and although he didn't feel comfortable about violating someone's privacy again, he opened it. Sissi wrote in loopy, swoopy cursive. She was also the type of person who dots their i's with little hearts. He groaned over the overly girlish handwriting, and began reading the first entry out of pure curiosity and boredom.  
_Dear Diary,  
Today was the first day of the new school year. It was awful. All of my friends went to a different school and now I'm all alone. I lazed through the day, listening to the teachers make the same boring speeches they make every year. I thought it was going to be the worst year ever until Mrs. Hertz's science class. (Okay, excuse me for being a boy and not knowing how this is supposed to sound, but here goes…) I looked up and saw this cute guy staring up front at the board. His name was Ulrich. I've only seen him a few times last year because he was never in any of my classes, so I didn't really notice him before. The seat next to him was empty and I thought I might go sit next to him, but at that same moment, a new boy sat in the seat. He was really short and wore abstract purple clothes. I thought he was gay until he started staring at some girl across the room. That boy's name was Odd. What kind of mother names their kid "Odd"? Anyway, he and Ulrich were always talking to each other in class. I overheard Odd making really dumb jokes and Ulrich laughing at them. I guess they were friends and Ulrich met him over the break or something. I decided that I didn't like that Odd kid. _  
Ulrich almost chuckled at the thought of the first day of the new school year. He and Odd were initially pen-pals until he coerced his parents to let him move out of NZ to go to Kadic. All during that class they were making jokes about Mrs. Hertz. He turned to the next entry.  
_Dear Diary,  
I got some friends today, if you can call them that. I was complaining to Daddy about not having any friends and how I'd be depressed all year and my grades would decline, so he promised me he'd arrange for me to meet some new people. The two he got for me were not what I had in mind at all. For starters, they were both boys. One was extremely geeky and had pimples all over his face. The other was kind of dumb and always had this blank look on his face. We had met in the ice cream parlor in town, as sort of a 'blind date'. We talked, although I was kind of disappointed. I didn't want to hurt their feelings though, because they were the only ones who wanted to be my friends. The geek's name was Herb and he had a knack for building robots for the annual competition, but he somehow always ended up in second place. The weird kid was Nicolas, and as it turns out, he was a pretty talented musician. He even played a number on the table with some utensils. Well, I'll talk to you later, Jim's in my wing telling everyone that it's lights out. _  
Ulrich always wondered how those three got to be friends. No wonder it was by completely random chance. He skipped forward a few pages.  
_Dear Diary,  
Today was really weird. Okay, here's what happened: Remember that Odd kid and Ulrich? Well, my gang and I were watching them in the courtyard today. They were sitting at a bench, when suddenly this blonde kid with thick glasses and a blue turtleneck came running over to them. He showed them something on his laptop. Now, I've seen this one before. His name is Jeremie and he was in my history class last year. He's a computer whiz—always on his laptop, and talking like Einstein in math. Herb looked pretty pissed when he saw him, so I guessed he was the one that always seemed to beat him at the robot contest. There was some Asian gothic girl leaning on a tree near their bench. She walked over and said something. Jeremie looked hesitant for some reason, and then he nodded his head in agreement. They all looked around for a moment, and we looked the other way so they wouldn't know we were watching. Next thing I knew, they were all making a break for it towards the park. I signaled for Nick and Herb to come with me as we ran after them. We tailed them for a while, always making sure they wouldn't notice us following. Try as we might, though, they still lost us. It was like they disappeared into thin air. Earlier this night, I looked out my window and saw the same bunch carrying a bunch of equipment and a few skateboards towards the park. I was too tired to run out and chase them, though. Speaking of which, I'm getting really sleepy. Good night._  
He cringed over this one. That was the day that Jeremie picked up the distress signal from Aelita. He approached him and Odd and said that he needed some help, and then showed us the signal. He had deciphered it into a message that said "SOS! I am in dire need of help. I am at the car factory on the river. Please hurry, this is urgent! Once you arrive, there is an elevator near the main entrance. I hope it still works. If you go into it, you will notice a keypad. Enter the code 9262. This will give you access to the lower levels of the factory, where I am located. You will know what to do after the doors re-open. Come as soon as you get this message, for my life, as well as everyone in this city's, is in danger." Ulrich had almost expected it to say "Luke, you are my only hope!" At first he thought that Jeremie was joking, but from the serious look on his face, he knew it was for real. That day was also the day that Yumi came into his life. She was eavesdropping from the tree, and said that she'd go along—she needed an adventure in her life. He knew a way to the factory because the manhole they use was near a popular make out spot in the park. (Yeah, yeah, I KNOW. I had to explain it somehow.) His older brother told him about it, because he and his girlfriend had gone through it and wound up at the factory before. Ulrich didn't like to think about what happened next. Once they finished following Aelita's instructions, the elevator stopped at the darkened super calculator room. It was dusty and full of cobwebs when they turned on the lights. But when Jeremie saw the computer, he went straight to it and turned it on. They eventually had to go to Lyoko to stop a band of blocks that were attacking Aelita. It was rough going since they were all so inexperienced. That night they went to town to get stuff to make it easier to get to the factory, since they knew their call to duty could happen anytime. They set up the ropes and placed the skateboards, and cleaned up the three secret levels of the factory some. Ulrich read on like this for a while longer, the entries ranging from pure hate of Yumi to Sissi's empty bragging.  
Just then, Ulrich's cell phone rang. He whispered a curse, instantly pressing the talk button. Sissi snored, and Ulrich was safe once again.  
"H-hello?" he whispered.  
"Ulrich!" It was Odd. "Where are you?"  
"Keep your voice down! I'm in Hope's car, parked at the factory. I'm in a bit of trouble."  
"Why? Are there some EMPIRE guards or something?"  
"No… it's-it's Sissi!"  
"Sissi! What are you talking about?"  
"Hope picked her and your dog up from the school. She's sleeping on me."  
"SHE'S _WHAT_!" Ulrich heard a shriek from the background. He cringed again. It was Yumi. "GIVE ME THAT PHONE! GIVE ME THAT PHONE! Ulrich, explain yourself."  
"No, Yumi, it's not like that. She fell asleep in her chair and reclined it back, and its right on top of me. She doesn't know I'm here."  
"Well get out of there for crying out loud!"  
"I'm at THE FACTORY'S PARKING LOT! If I got out, I'd be shot as soon as my foot touched the ground!"  
"You don't have to yell at me."  
Ulrich mentally slapped himself. Not only had he yelled at Yumi, he'd done it _really loud_. Sissi's eyes snapped open.  
"ULRICH!"  
"Um… sleeping beauty's up and she has bed head. Gotta go." Ulrich ended his call. Sissi was staring at him blankly. She let the seat back up, and then turned back around.  
"Oh, Ulrich dear! I missed you so much!" she squealed, embracing the helpless Ulrich in a big hug. "I knew you'd come back for me!"  
Ulrich groaned.  
_When's Hope coming back?_


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12 A Real Friend**  
Yumi frowned as she pressed the 'end call' button and handed the cell phone back to Odd. Sissi. Why did she have to be so persistent? Why couldn't she just leave them alone?  
_Because, it's Ulrich. It's about him._ she thought. She asked herself: What would she do, if she was in the same position? Yumi was afraid to answer that question. Jeremie patted a hand on her back.  
"Yumi… don't worry. It'll be alright, you'll see," he said, smiling. Jeremie was like that. He was a friend exactly when you needed a friend.  
"Thanks, Jere."  
Jeremie turned and began talking to Aelita. The group was walking, heading towards a bus terminal, in the cold pitch black of the night. What was Hope thinking? How were they supposed to just walk to the airport? Sometimes Yumi didn't know what to think about Hope. She knew Ulrich was suspicious of her, but she couldn't quite bring herself to see from his perspective. Hope was their savior—she'd risked her life many times for people she didn't know. How could Ulrich suspect her of anything? Well, true, it did seem like Hope was a little too perfect at times. But does that automatically make her evil? Dangerous?  
Yumi looked over at Odd, the slim, strange haired boy. She could see that he was a little worried too. After all, Ulrich was his best friend.  
_Well, why shouldn't I try and make him feel better?_ Immediately after that thought, the bad thoughts came plowing into her mind like a dark storm cloud. The dark thoughts. Those suppressed feelings of anxiety that she tried to hide, that she let out through martial arts.  
_Is he my best friend, like Ulrich is to him? Are any of these guys my best friends? I hang out with them, they sort of understand me, but are they really as close to me as I like to imagine?_ Come to think of it, despite all the nice things Ulrich had done for her, it was hard for her to try and think of him as an actual 'best friend'. But… why not? What was she doing wrong? Why didn't they joke around with her like they did with each other? Yumi shook her head, trying to dispel the bad thoughts.  
_None of that is true. These guys really do care about me, I'm not alone, not like I was before._ she thought this and they finally arrived at the terminal. They walked in the door, Jeremie holding the door open for Aelita and Yumi first. Jeremie looked fondly at Aelita with that silly expression he always got when they used to talk on a Lyoko connection. He didn't look at Yumi at all. …_Right?_  
The gang was on the bus, riding towards the airport. Jeremie and Aelita sat in one seat, and Odd sat in another. Yumi sat alone. She began to think about the recent events. Well, for one, they didn't have any luggage, since… her house blew up. That evil, twisted EMPIRE. Dr. Gibson. Who was he? Why was he doing these crazy things? And most importantly, where did that whole organization come from? It's so orderly and structured, expansive and prepared. But it was like it came out of thin air. If they had that big faux-military force, why hadn't anyone ever noticed them before? Did they all train and operate underground until the Lyoko-goers thought it was safe to leave the factory, and then burrow upwards like little moles?  
Yumi wanted to ask Jeremie, to see what he thought, but he and Aelita were in deep conversation, talking about something like the "theory of general relativity". She'd only heard that phrase in combination with Einstein somewhere before so she didn't quite feel like joining them, and she didn't want to interrupt. Still, there was Odd. He wasn't quite as smart as Jeremie, but at least he was someone to talk to.  
She got up and sat next to him. He had his eyes closed but he wasn't asleep, probably thinking about something. He looked a little strangely at her for a brief moment and Yumi's confidence was almost shattered. She gathered herself up, and mentally took a deep breath.  
"Hello, Odd," Yumi said cheerily.  
"Hi, Yumi. Did you want some company?" he replied. _See?_ she reassured herself. _He's not mean, he'd never try and do anything to hurt my feelings._  
"Well, actually, yes. So, how're you doing?"  
"Um… well, let's see. EMPIRE tried to kill us, we're wanted dead and not likely alive, Ulrich's somewhere in Sissi's clutches, and Hope…" he broke off there and turned to the window. Yumi felt a little embarrassed. Why had she asked how he was doing? Of course he wasn't gonna say, "Oh, yes, Yumi, everything's peachy. Some whacko's trying to take over the world, but that's okay!"  
"Sorry," apologized Yumi. Odd turned back her way.  
"No, it's not your fault. I'm just in sort of a bad mood." Yumi felt impelled to be the friend Jeremie often was for her.  
"Do you want to talk about it?"  
Odd gave a soft, weak smile, and, while at first hesitant, he nodded. "Where to begin… first, Samantha died and I felt like there was nothing left for me in the world. That's why I was so reckless that last day in… you-know-where. Then, we got kidnapped by EMPIRE. I didn't know if things could get any worse, but then I met Hope. I'll admit to you, as long as you don't tell anyone, that well… I guess I'm smitten with the girl."  
Yumi was speechless. Odd was confiding in her, treating her like… a true friend. She tried to smile a knowing smile.  
"But… remember, when she was talking to that boy on the phone?" Odd asked. She nodded. "I remember the last thing she said… she told him she loved him."  
Yumi suddenly understood, for real this time. The poor boy was heartbroken. "I'm sorry," she apologized again.  
"Don't be. It's not like you or me could do anything about it. So she has a boyfriend. Oh well. I guess that's just how it goes…" he turned away from Yumi yet again. She heard him sob very softly, trying to stifle sounds and tears. Yumi gave Odd a big hug. It was the best she could do, and all she could think of to comfort him. He was silent, and then he sniffed.  
"Thanks, Yumi." he said. The bus pulled into the airport parking lot. "You're a real friend."


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13 Peril rears its ugly head**

Hope left Dr. Gibson's office, silently furious and clenching her teeth. She held the transfer papers to her side, along with an extra set she had reluctantly taken. It wasn't easy getting transferred. Gibson was extremely against the idea, as well as surprised and suspicious.  
_Of course, there's still one more thing to do—get the hardware for Vince,_ she thought to herself. Hope walked through a procession of teenaged male guards, shoving them out of the way like trivial vermin. They merely glared at her maliciously; she smirked at them. Feeling defiant, Hope decided to add to the show. She spun on her heel, put her open hands up to the side of her face, and let out long, slobbery _phbbbbt!_ Just then, she heard someone clear their throat.  
"Ms. Jamison," came a familiar voice. Hope instantly faced him.  
"Patterson."  
"What do you think you're doing?" he asked, like a chiding father. Hope almost burst out laughing. She placed her hands on her hips.  
"Oh, nothing at all, Patterson, sir. I merely thought these nasty boys were being bad and needed to be _put in their place_." she spat out the last words through her teeth. Patterson's face turned red with anger. He pursed his lips, almost quaking with absolute fury.  
"Now listen here, little girl."  
"Don't you dare call me a little girl, you snake. Now, I suggest you leave and go back to your pathetic little 'executive office' and do whatever the hell it is you do. _Doctor's orders._"  
Before Patterson blew his top off, he turned and marched angrily around a corner. The boys were at a standing still with wide eyes, shocked beyond belief.  
Hope quickly left, looking for a certain someone. Before long, she ran into exactly who she was looking for.  
"Hello, sister," said another girl about the same age as Hope, with the same curly dark brown hair as Hope, the same brown eyes as Hope, and she was also the same height as Hope. The only difference between the two was the colors of their uniforms. The girl put her hands on her hips. Apparently, she had the same attitude as Hope.  
"Hi, Gina." Hope said with a wide grin on her face.  
"What's that there?" she asked, indicating the papers that had fluttered all over the hallway.  
"…Gina… Gigi. Sis." Hope started to say with a sweet voice and an innocent look on her face.  
"Oh, God. What have you gotten yourself into now?" Gina asked. She knew that Hope NEVER called her Gigi unless she was in trouble.  
"I need a favor."  
"It wouldn't have anything to do with Project L, would it?"  
"Sis…"  
"Oh, GOD!"  
"Gigi! I really need your help!"  
"NO! No, no, no, no! Do you know what d—" Hope slapped a hand over her twin sister's mouth. She shushed her sternly.  
"GET OFF!" Gina grabbed hold of her and twisted her arm. When she let go, her sister fell helplessly to the ground. Hope looked up at her, her face twisted into a frantic "PLEASE?".  
"Oh… alright. What?"  
"I need you to help me to get into Storage, and I need a couple files for Vince."  
"You've got HIM in on this too?"  
"It's really important." Gina stared into her sister's eyes. There was something she was hiding. Ah, of course.  
"Can I ask you a question?"  
"As if you haven't asked enough," Hope replied, looking around to see if a guard was eavesdropping.  
"Is there something more that you haven't told me?"  
"…"  
"It's that Della Robbia kid isn't it?"  
"Shut up."  
"Wow. You really are in some deep doo-doo. Come on. I think I know a way we can get into Storage."

A boy sat leaning in a dark room, in front of a large computer, strumming his fingers on the desk. He had yellow tags of paper with all kinds of equations and quickly scribed notes all over his desk. He opened a voice recorder.  
"Log. Right now, it's still all theory. No one knows how to transfer someone into a virtual world without being transferred through a scanner. In fact, until about a year and a half ago, only one man knew how to transfer anyone at all. I need to find out the secret to the "Materialization concept" back at EMPIRE, so I can try and reverse it. And wait for Hope to come with the tech for it," he spoke into a microphone. He stopped the recording. Who knew, maybe someday he'd be famous. There could be a book or something that had these logs in them. So he kept making them.  
That kid, Ulrich Stern. He had called earlier. Vince chuckled; he remembered how the boy was trying to act like he was with EMPIRE. Vince had played along, to make him think that he was actually doing something, when in reality Vince knew who he was not long after they started talking. It was so easy—Vince hated it. He hated playing the smart versus the stupid. He just wished he didn't know everything to fast.  
_But, the question is… why_ did _he call? Hope must've explained who I was, so he had no reason to use her cell phone to call me back…_ Vince scratched his chin, and took a sip of the bottle of water he had in front of him. Then he frowned contemplatively. _Unless…_  
Vince shook his head, and went back to work.

Hope and Gina stood back to back, in defensive stances, as five guards lay unconscious around them. Gina shoved a box with a bunch of chips, wires, computer parts, and a disc with files from EMPIRE's special-access only database.  
"Go! Run!" she shouted. Hope took off heading down the bridge, looking back behind her. "I hope I see you again!"  
"Me too!"

"Ulrich, darling," Sissi asked, looking down at her nails as she was filing them, sitting in the back seat next to Ulrich; he was slumping in the seat with grim exasperation. He turned his neck, slowly and painfully, with gritted teeth and a look that suggested that he would much like to kill himself.  
"What?"  
"Why do you always hang out with Yumi and those losers?"  
"Because," he said in a strained voice, "they're my friends. You've heard of that idea before, haven't you?"  
Sissi giggled. "Don't be silly, Ulrich."  
"So, you haven't?" She giggled again.  
"You're funny," she said, as she looked at him fondly. Ulrich was beginning to feel even more uncomfortable. Sissi was starting to act really weird. She stopped filing her nails and focused all her attention on him. She turned so that she was directly facing him. She then leaned closer, staring into his eyes.  
"S-Sissi…" Ulrich stammered, beginning to blush furiously. Just as it seemed Sissi was about to go in for the kill, the car door opened.  
"Um… excuse me, am I interrupting something?" Hope asked, looking from Sissi to Ulrich. He scrambled away from a surprised Sissi, and sat on the seat with his knees up to his head and covering his extremely red face with his hands. Hope closed the door and then climbed into the driver's seat. "I think I'll do you two a favor and forget this ever happened."  
Sissi looked worriedly at Ulrich, who was still burying his face like an ostrich. The car's engine started and Hope began to drive it out of the parking lot.  
"We've got to get out of the country like, now, so I'm about to break a few traffic laws. Err, when you guys get your driver's license, DON'T do anything like I'm about to do right now," Hope called from up front. "Buckle up."  
She then slammed on the gas and the car propelled forward. There was practically no traffic since it was rather late at night and people were scared out of their wits because of the monsters marching around. One might say that the ride was similar to a rocket-powered roller coaster on steroids; the car jerking around corners and dodging debris from the monsters' rampage. Hope finally swerved onto the Autoroute and gave the car all she had, heading on a direct course for the airport.

"You still can't reach him?" Aelita asked from a bench. Jeremie was standing up, pacing back and forth in front of her bench, trying to contact Ulrich from his cell phone. He sighed, hung up, and sank onto the bench next to Aelita, who blushed momentarily.  
"No. I think he might've turned it off after Odd called the first time," Jeremie replied. He glanced over to the food court, where Odd had ordered French fries for him and Yumi, in an effort to console her. He was stuffing his face of course, but Yumi merely swirled the same French fry in ketchup for ten minutes. (Now, I'm not saying that French fries really are French—they're just convenient right now.)  
"Odd…" Yumi said, looking up from her now soaking wet French fry.  
"Mm?" was all Odd could muster.  
"Odd!"  
"Wha?"  
"Stop eating like that! People are starting to stare!" Odd swallowed.  
"Well then you're lucky Aelita wasn't hungry. She's worse than me!" he said as if that was a good enough reason. Yumi groaned and went back to her fry. Jeremie and Aelita had walked over to the table and now were trying to relax, but they were still too nervous. Jeremie looked at his ticket, and then at the clock.  
"They'd better hurry up," he said. "Our flight leaves in only a few minutes. Let's go to the waiting area at the gate."  
Jeremie stood up, and Aelita and Odd followed suit. Yumi hesitated.  
"Wait. Maybe we should stay…"  
"No, Ulrich has a ticket too. They'd be able to find us."  
"Are you sure?"  
"It's OK, really, Yumi. Come on, we've got to go or we'll never get out of here." Jeremie reassuringly patted her on the back and smiled. Yumi sighed and got up. Since they'd already gone through the security, it wasn't far to get to the waiting area for Gate 5 (A/N: Haven't been to an airport in YEARS… still don't know how it works….).  
Things were going a little bit more smoothly. Everyone had their tickets and Odd was full—well, at least for the moment. Ulrich and Hope were sure to show up soon. Yumi was even feeling a bit more optimistic. They were walking fairly cheerfully; Jeremie was trying to teach Aelita to whistle, and they were nearing the gate area, when it happened. First, the group started hearing faint rumbling, and immediately froze as if they'd been hit with a block's Ice Shot in Lyoko. No one breathed. The PA system crackled to life.  
"Everyone please evacuate the area immediately. The capital has just been under attack, and it has been advised that—hey!" A man's voice echoed through the now frightfully silent airport. Sounds of what seemed like a struggle followed, and then a chair scraping on the floor, indicating that someone had just sat down.  
"I'm pleased to inform you that the country is no longer in control of the President," a sickeningly familiar, sinister voice poisoned the gang to the very core with utter horror. "The EMPIRE has just recently seized power over France and this airport. Let it be known that no flights are to leave until further notice."  
Everyone in the airport stood still in shock. The kids were in worse condition. Aelita had sunken to her knees, Yumi was crying emphatically, and Jeremie stood rigid, unable to move.  
"Please remain calm," Dr. Gibson said, and Odd could just see the evil man just smile in that little room. Of course, no one listened. It was like a sudden animal-like madness had fallen over the airport. People were screaming, running everywhere like frantic mice. Some people saw this as an opportunity to raid the cash registers at the food places, steal women's purses, break windows, and just generally cause trouble. And no one saw, in the midst of all the terrible commotion, four teenagers running past the unattended Gate 5.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14 New York or Bust**

With tears running down the side of her face, Yumi opened the door to the airplane and let her friends in. Odd closed the door, exhaling as he leaned against it.  
"I-I can't believe he actually did it. They….they took over France," Jeremie said, staring out into space and shaking. Aelita consoled him.  
"This isn't our fault," she said warmly.  
"You're right." Jeremie looked at her. "It's my fault."  
"Jeremie! Why would you say something like that? If it's anybody's fault, it's that Gibson man's."  
"I'm the one who left it accessible to anyone. I left the materialization program in the disc drive. I didn't lock the factory up like I should've," Jeremie's face scrunched up as his sadness and guilt began to surface. He started sniffling. Aelita embraced him, and cried along with him. Odd walked up into the unoccupied cockpit.  
"I don't suppose any of you know how to fly a plane?" he called back. It was mostly a rhetorical question. A few moments later, he poked his head out through the door again.  
"Hey, guys! You'd better come see this!" Yumi gloomily slinked up the aisle. Aelita "helped" Jeremie towards the front—she was mostly dragging him, since he now refused to move. There awaited a horrid scene through the view of the cockpit window. _Stomp. Stomp. Stomp._ The ground was shaking violently, in the pattern of footsteps. Marching. Gigantic, terrible, ugly humanoid monsters were marching in unison like Nazi soldiers around the airport.  
Suddenly, the door they went through opened again, and they heard someone running towards the cockpit. Three someones.  
"Ulrich!" Yumi exclaimed. She, being very un-Yumi like, practically jumped over Aelita and tackled Ulrich. "I missed you, you little bastard!"  
"Uh, hi, Yumi," he said, blushing. Yumi soon realized what she was doing, got up and backed away. She covered her face. Chuckling, Hope stepped over Ulrich who was still on the ground, set a box next to the wall, and walked up to Odd.  
"Hello, Odd," she smiled.  
"Hi." Hope squinted at him.  
"What's wrong?"  
"Nothing. I-I'm fine. I'm glad you made it. But, as you can see," he waved his arm out to indicate the view from outside the plane, "there's not a whole lot we can do right now."  
Sissi was looking, wide-eyed, out at the monsters marching around the airport. Her mouth was open. She wasn't moving.  
"Sissi?" Ulrich asked after getting up from the floor. He walked up to her. Yumi spontaneously moved rather close to Ulrich, without thinking or really knowing why. "Are you okay?"  
Her lips were quivering. It looked like she was attempting to form words.  
"B…b…." Sissi stuttered.  
"Bathroom? Do you have to go?" Odd asked. Everyone looked at him. "What? It was just a guess."  
He shrugged. Sissi shook her head, slowly. She pointed out of the windshield.  
"Big. Big… things. Really, really big things!" she said, starting to come out of it. "What ARE those things? What's going on! I just thought what's-her-name was trying to get you guys out of the country and those Emperor people… REALLY BIG THINGS!"  
She started swaying, and then collapsed and fell to the floor.  
"She fainted," Jeremie said quietly, pushing his glasses up with his finger.  
"Thank you for stating the obvious, Jeremie," Ulrich snapped, kneeling down to Sissi to see if she was alright. Aelita frowned.  
"Ulrich… you didn't have to say it like that," she said. Hope was over in the corner, cringing wit her hand up to her forehead, rubbing her brow.  
"It's already happening," She said. Hope shook her head and then turned to face the others. "We have to get out of here. There's got to be another way. Maybe we could take a boat… No… that would take too long…"  
For the first time, Hope was not the perfect heroine with all the answers that always knew what to do. She was human, and she was stumped. Odd's stomach growled.  
"Oooh. All that fast food is starting to catch up with me," he said, rubbing his belly. "Pardon me. The W.C. beckons."  
He ran—well, more of a brisk walk—towards the back, to go to the bathroom. Strangely, the door read "occupied". Odd jingled the handle .  
"Hey! It won't open!" he grunted and folded his arms. Then he started banging on the door. After a few blows, he started kicking it and doing everything he could to open it.  
"Stupid door! I really gotta go!" Odd shouted. Just as he was about to enlist some aid, the doorknob started turning by itself. Slowly. The door opened, and a man fell back from the door to curling up on the floor, shaking like a frightened child. He had a pilot's uniform on.

"So you see," Hope concluded. "We really, really, really need you to fly us to New York."  
"But what about all those…._monstrosities_ out there on the runway?"  
"Don't worry about those. We have a plan," Odd said. He was smiling, standing next to Hope. Yumi looked at him and remembered their conversation on the bus. She smiled too; he must have been happy to just say the word "we".  
Odd took Hope over to a corner and they started whispering.  
"Um… what is the plan?"  
"How should I know? You're the one who said it!"  
"But you always have a plan!" Hope froze for a second.  
"Not this time." Odd turned towards the others. The pilot raised an eyebrow, and Aelita looked at him expectantly.  
"Over here, guys," he waved them over.  
"What?" Ulrich asked.  
"We don't have a plan."  
"…Are you serious?"  
"Why would I lie?"  
"Okay… um… hmm." Ulrich put scratched his chin, thinking. Jeremie suddenly had a look upon his face that seemed to say "Aha!"  
"Aha!" Jeremie snapped his fingers and grinned.  
"Why are you grinning? This is not a very funny situation…" said Hope.  
"I have a plan."  
"You do?"  
"Yes."  
"Err… excuse me, uh, weirdo kids? I hate to interrupt, but… the ugly robot things are starting to come straight towards us," the pilot interjected.  
"Any minute now, Einstein!" Odd said frantically. But Jeremie wasn't there. "Hey… where'd he go?"  
They all looked this way and that, but there was no sign of their friend.  
"Under here!" he said. Jeremie was underneath the control panel, messing with a bunch of wires.  
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!"  
"Hey, stop that! You're going to screw the whole thing up!" the pilot grabbed for Jeremie but he pulled away.  
"Just wait a minute! I know what I'm doing," Jeremie rearranged one last wire, and then came out. He sat in the pilot's seat. After tapping a few buttons, he picked up the headset. "Odd. Hand me your cell phone."  
"Why?" Odd asked, taking it from his pocket and handing it to the computer wizard.  
"Remember that horrible, horrible ringtone you bought a while back?" Jeremie scrolled through the menu on the phone. "Well, I'm going to make it even more horrible. For the monsters."  
"What's a ringtone?" Aelita asked Yumi.  
"It's a noise or tune someone's cell phone makes when they receive a call. Although I don't really get why Jeremie needs one right now," Yumi explained. At the pilot's seat, Jeremie put the microphone of the headset up to the speaker on the cell phone.  
"Sir?" he asked the pilot, turning around.  
"What?"  
"Could you contact the control tower?"  
"Sure," the pilot hurried to the control panel. He flipped some switches and turned a dial. "Okay."  
"GUYS!" Hope shouted, eyes wide in fear. A gigantic metal hand was about to come crashing through the windshield.  
"I hope this works!" Jeremie pushed a button on Odd's cell phone. Everyone covered their ears and moaned in pain as an excruciating high pitched, loud, chaotic melody played increasingly louder and louder.  
The hand stopped.  
"How did….? What did…? Uh, what are you doing, Aelita?" Yumi asked. Aelita had basically glomped Jeremie. She was hugging him and he was beginning to turn funny colors.  
"That was BRILLIANT! How did you figure it out?"  
"Well… I remembered that time when I built that sound wave generator to clear the bees out of the way so we could get to the factory, and then I was thinking about frequency and things like that. So I figured that since the monsters had to be controlled by Dr. Gibson at the control tower, he was probably connected to Lyoko. All I had to do was contact it and then use something with a high enough frequency to jam the signal from the factory… well, I suppose it would be EMPIRE's headquarters now?" Jeremie said. Hope looked away and blushed momentarily. She felt out of place. "So anyway, doing that would immobilize the monsters. I had a hunch that they were never totally autonomous but I still needed something to 'bring the noise', so to speak. And then I remembered 'Hey, wasn't that the name of that terrible ringtone Odd tried to kill us with before?' And the rest is history."  
"INGENIOUS!" Aelita exclaimed. "Of course, I'd never be able to think something like that up."  
"Nonsense, Aelita. You can do anything you put your mind to."  
"Really, Jeremie?"  
"Really."  
"Wow. I still don't think I'll be as good as you."  
"I already know you're smarter than I am, if not more."  
"I am? But, you know so much…"  
"That's just things about the real world. Your mathematics and algebra skills are really astounding."  
"Well, now, I wouldn't say that…" Aelita said, blushing "humbly". Hope nudged Yumi with her elbow.  
"She's trying to get him to flatter her, isn't she?" she whispered.  
"She sure is. Hmm. Maybe I should be taking notes," Yumi gazed over at Ulrich, who was now trying to awaken Sissi, and frowned.  
Two black boots came into Ulrich's vision. He looked up.  
"What?"  
"How is _Sissi_ doing, hmm?"  
"She's still unconscious."  
"I can see that."  
"Then why did you ask?"  
"Oh, I don't know. You seemed to be spending so much time hovering around Miss Lizzy here so I thought there might be something especially wrong with her."  
Ulrich said nothing. He was now starting to get the message. Was Yumi actually mad at him? What had he been doing wrong? He was only trying to help Sissi instead of callously leaving her on the floor like everyone else…  
"Are you… upset?"  
"Not at all," Yumi flipped her hair, but she still kept her eyes shut and faced away from Ulrich with the same frown on her face.  
"You are too!"  
"What would make you think that?"  
"Just because I'm trying to help somebody that kind of just FAINTED? You are extremely **selfish**. You should be ashamed of yourself. I can't believe you would act this way!" She snapped her head back at him, jaw agape and eyes wide. She squinted at him.  
"'Remember, Mr. So-and-So, remember, I'm a lady.'" And with that, she turned on him. Ulrich frowned.  
_So she thinks she's ANNE FRANK now or something? What is this bull crap?_  
"Okay. I think the runway's all clear now. You guys had better go buckle up before they turn themselves back on. This is gonna be a close one," the pilot called to them. The kids walked back into first class and sat in the rows. Ulrich and Yumi sat as far away from each other as possible, and Hope helped him buckle Sissi into a seat. Odd, Jeremie, and Aelita sat next to each other. The brunette sat across from Odd in the other row.  
The plane's engine roared as it was turned on. After maneuvering around the frozen monster, which wasn't easy without much momentum, the plane finally began to taxi. Everyone's hearts were pounding, afraid that Gibson would figure out what was going on and send the humanoids to attack at any moment. Luck seemed to be with them, though, because as the plane ascended into the air, nothing stopped them or crushed them and no missiles were shot at the aircraft.

Walking out of the bathroom, Dr. Gibson was ambushed by two younger officers."What do you want?"  
"Sir! Um, did you authorize one of the airplanes to leave the grounds?"  
"No… of course not!" He almost began to run to the control tower, when he stopped and a thought popped into his head. He remembered a conversation he had with a female teenaged guard not long ago.  
"Ah. She must have requisitioned the plane. I don't approve of her not asking me… No matter. I might as well let it go."  
"Sir? Who are you talking about?"  
"NONE OF YOUR DAMN BUISNESS!" The officers stepped back.  
"Go back to the control room."  
"But there's one more—"  
"What is it!"  
"The Humanoids… there's something wrong with them."  
"Of course there is. I hadn't programmed them to recognize EMPIRE employees. So she would've had to deactivate them some how…" Gibson walked back into the control room. He checked the laptop he had connected to the system there. A red "error" box was on the screen. "Disconnected? Hm. A little unorthodox, but… Oh what do I care? At least nothing was damaged."  
"Are you done talking to yourself, sir?"  
"Yes. I mean—hey! Don't speak to me like that, young man!"  
"Oh, uh, yes sir, sorry sir!"  
"Get me a mocha latte!"  
"Yes sir!" The two officers scampered out of the room.

* * *

Okay, whoo! All of the chapters have been uploaded (it's still not finished, though). By the way, in case you were wondering, this story was completely written by me (TAK). I haven't been in contact with CG in a while.. so... yeah.  



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